Lt. Gov. Carroll attends Chamber breakfast

Florida Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll was guest speaker at the Chamber of Commerce Power Breakfast Friday, and spoke of Jackson County as a model community that others should follow as they seek economic health and growth. It has a lower unemployment rate than  many other communities, for instance, and its business-friendly attitude may be a key factor in that statistic, she suggested. The state of Florida itself has been raked as the third-most business-friendly state in the nation, she said, and the governor’s office is working to make it the highest-rated of all.

After the meeting, Carroll said she was impressed by the unified efforts of leaders here as they court new job-creating businesses or seek to help existing ones expand. Educational leaders at all levels, the chamber and other economy-oriented organizations, and agencies responsible for finding those opportunities work together, she said. On a united front, they present businesses with information, enticing incentives packages when appropriate, ease their way through the permitting process, share information about the community, and shepherd them through the various steps that would need to be taken if they chose to locate here. She said the county’s activities in many cases mirrors efforts being made by the governor’s office. She said, for instance, the state is trying to streamline the permitting process for incoming businesses and to clear away other restraints that stifle business growth. The governor, she said, is proposing a $130 million package of incentives that can be used to help Florida attract and keep small businesses.

The county, she said, has the attention and admiration of Gov. Rick Scott as it continues its own business-stimulating efforts. In fact, she said, the governor’s office has made calls to on the county’s behalf in some instances. Doing so, she said, lets the prospective businesses know how supportive the state is in trying to bring them here.

She said the state is working with the county on at least one such effort now, but would not elaborate on the details at this stage of the process.

In her speech, Carroll mentioned various growth opportunities in light manufacturing that are emerging in the state. A veteran of the U.S. Navy, Carroll spoke in particular of defense contracts as a potential growth engine as private companies are hired to make various pieces of military equipment.

The state stands ready, she said, to help Jackson and other communities showcase their assets in order to bring those or other operations into the area.

In Jackson County, those assets might include the rail and Interstate highway systems that run through it, the community’s proximity to the potential deep water port in Port St. Joe, and to the Panama City airport and beaches roughly 45 minutes away.  The distribution park here is another.

Carroll said the state is eager to help communities inventory and highlight those positives.

In a question and answer period following her speech, Carroll was asked about the governor’s stand on a controversial septic tank law which has been targeted for repeal by some who feel that its requirements are unreasonable. For instance, the law requires septic tank owners to have them inspected every five years, a costly undertaking for many households. Carroll said she and Scott support repeal of the law.

She said the governor’s office is pushing, too, for legislative reform that would cut the cost of funding workers and unemployment compensation requirements for Florida businesses.

 After her Chamber talk, Carroll headed over to help out with a ribbon-cutting ceremony for a helping organization as it opens its doors on Guyton Street in Marianna.